Zuni – Lt. Col. (U.S.M.C. ret.) Norris Ledford Powell, 85, returned to be with the Lord on March 31, 2026.

Born April 30, 1940, in Stanardsville, Va, to the late Paulis Stephens "Steve" and Minnie Ola Moyers Powell, he grew up on his family's farm in Greene County, Va, with 10 siblings. After graduating from William Monroe High School in 1957, he attended Virginia Polytechnic Institute from 1957 to 1961, then was commissioned as an officer and served on active duty as a helicopter pilot in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1961 to 1966. Following his active service, he continued to serve honorably in the Marine Corps Reserves until 1988. While in the Reserves, he returned to school to study agronomy, earning a Master's degree from VPI&SU and a doctorate from Iowa State University in 1973.

He devoted his professional civilian career to Virginia Tech, serving on the faculty in Blacksburg from 1973 to 1985 and at what is now known as the Tidewater Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Suffolk, Va, from 1985 until retiring in 2004.

A man of public faith, he was a devoted member of The Rock Church in Franklin, Va, since joining in 1985, serving as treasurer and in many other capacities. It was there that he met his beloved second wife, Wilma [Bishop], whom he married on July 15, 2006. They made their home in Zuni, Va until her passing in July of 2019, and he continued living there until moving to Salem Terrace in Salem, Va, in December 2024 and to Davis and McDaniel Veterans Care Center in Roanoke, Va, in March 2026.

He was predeceased by his wife, Wilma Story Bishop-Powell, and two brothers, Nelson and Norman Powell.

Left to cherish his memory are two daughters, Laura Powell Bateman (Trey) and Anne Brooke Griffith (Jim); two sons, Jon Ledford Powell (Jackie) and Steven Craig Powell; four sisters, Patty Lee Baugher, Janie Austin, Audrey Morris, and Joann Powell; four brothers, Larry Powell (Emogene), Calvin Powell (Charlotte), Griffin Powell (Lilian), and Merril Powell (Mary Ann); two brothers-in-law, Doug Story (Pam), and Allan Morris; a step-daughter, Danielle Worsham (Buck); a step-son, Dylan Bishop (Donna); seven grandchildren, Daniel Powell, Steven Powell, Michael Bateman, Sam Griffith, Tiffany Caulder, Kateland Caulder, and Harley Bishop; and many treasured nieces and nephews.

A Funeral Service will be held at Noon on Tuesday, April 7, 2026 in the Rock Church of Franklin with Pastor Danny Dillon officiating. Burial will follow in Black Creek Baptist Church Cemetery. A reception will be held afterward for family and friends at Rock Church.

www.wrightfuneralhome.org